allie

I believe the largest change this election will bring about is how the rest of the world views the United States. As long as George W. Bush has been in office, the US has been a joke. It’s pretty hard to work with other countries when the entire world hates your president. The response to Barack Obama’s election has been overwhelmingly positive across the globe. Internationally, people see the election of Obama as a sign that Americans are more open-minded and ready to address international issues than they have ever been.

On a personal and political level, I’m not sure how “change” might play out. I was most excited to see where Obama would go with the national health care situation, and how universal health care could work in the United States. Unfortunately, it looks like with the state of the economy and the recent near-crash of the stock market, we are going to have to wait and get our finances in order before we can address the dire state of health care in our country.

On a social and cultural level, I think the election of Barack Obama is a sign that a shift is happening in the mindset of the American people. I don’t feel this very often, but today I am proud of my country. I’m proud that enough people in my country could overcome race, misconceptions, and straight up ignorance (“his middle name is Hussein… that means he’s a Muslim, right?”) and do what’s best for our nation.